Doublet : Western Australian Highlanders

Place Oceania: Australia, Western Australia
Accession Number REL/18362.001
Collection type Heraldry
Object type Uniform
Physical description Brass, Cotton sateen, Cotton twill, Patent leather, Silver bullion wire, Silvered brass, Superfine wool, Wool worsted
Maker Unknown
Date made c 1903
Conflict Period 1900-1909
Australian Colonial Forces, 1854-1900
Description

Scarlet superfine wool doublet with Inverness skirts and dark blue stand collar and cuffs. Lower edge of collar piped with white wool with whitemetal thistle badges of the Western Australian Highlanders. Scarlet shoulder straps are decorated with embroidered silver wire shoulder titles 'W.A.H.' and held in place with a small silvered button of the type worn by the Perth Rifle Volunteers. Cuffs and skirts are decorated with three rows of doubled white twisted cotton braid, each row completed with a large silvered Western Australian Highlanders button made by 'SAMUEL BROs LTD LONDON'. Eight more of the same buttons at front and two at back waist. Brass belt hooks at each side of doublet. Left front, skirts and cuffs all piped with white wool. Lower front skirt flaps have welt pockets lined with undyed linen. Lower left sleeve has a single white upward pointing chevron on a scarlet wool ground for Good Conduct. Body of tunic lined with partially quilted khaki cotton twill. Concealed pocket inside left breast lined with white cotton. On the right front facing, the remains of a glued paper label. Skirts lined with white cotton sateen and sleeves with plain white cotton. Collar originally lined with scarlet superfine but right half of collar has been relined with scarlet wool. Black patent leather neck tab at left edge and neck fastened with single ferrous metal hook and eye. Knitted yellow wool loop at back neck. The is a silver coloured metal badge in the left pocket. This badge has a lower wreathof thistles, there is a male figure holding a large X.

History / Summary

Provisional approval for the formation of a Highland Volunteer Corps in Western Australia was given just prior to Ferderation but sufficient numbers to form the required number of companies may not have occured until 1903. The uniform the Western Australian Highlanders chose to adopt was that of the Cameron Highlanders complete with kilt.